Blogs from Ko Pha-Ngan, South-West Thailand, Thailand, Asia - page 12

Day 18 and 19 It started early. Tonight about 7.30pm, we leave for Suratthani which is a 12 hour overnight train ride south from Bangkok. We will then take a one and half hour bus ride to the Donsak Pier and a ferry trip of two and half hours to Koh Pa Ngan which will mean yet another trip of about 45 minutes at the island until we get to our secluded, beautiful beach and bungalow accommodation. Yes!!!! Today has been a chance to get to know the other members of the group and so to do that we headed off on two boat trips used by the public, down the river to the Temple of Dawn. It is a combined temple with the Hindu and Buddhist it seems as it has a long cultural history. ... read more

Haad Rin is a bit of a maze of foot path streets with no vehicle traffic permitted (at least for the most part during the full moon party). Niki and a few others told me that your first stop at Haad Rin pretty much has to be Chicken Corner. What's Chicken Corner you say? Now, I know what you may be thinking; at first you're probably picturing all manner of chickens bolting left and right as half drunk back packers chase them down the streets, hands out-stretched as if pursuing a hat blown off their head in a sudden breeze. Instead it is two restaurants across from one another that specialize in, you guessed it - chicken sandwiches. We decided the fist one we'd hit was the shop that made chicken schnitzels. They were cranking these ... read more

We awoke the next day to my first taste of a tropical storm. It started with the rain literally pounding down on the roof of our bungalow. Back home on the west coast of british colombia, we get a lot of rain and occasionally we get some driving rain that pours down and forces cars to pull over as their wind shield wipers just cant keep up with the deluge. The rain that morning made those look like spring showers. It hammered down and within seconds there were wide spreading pools on the ground and palm trees bending under the pressure. Then the flashes of lightning over our heads followed immediately by window rattling thunder. It was incredible, and I stood out on the deck of our bungalow marvelling at the sheer power of it all. ... read more

I. LOVE. THIS. ISLAND. It has everything I love wrapped up conveniently in a little package. Clear turquoise waters. White sand. Jungle interior. Mountains. Night life when you want it, whispering palm trees when you don’t. Bungalows on the beach for $20 a night. It is a backpacker’s dream. As I write this entry my skin is still emitting heat from all the sun it has absorbed in the past five days. I smell like a tropical island – part sweat, part sea salt, part no-cares-in-the-world euphoria.I wish I could store this smell in a little bottle and dab in on my wrists on a cold winter’s day. From Chiang Mai Travis and I took a twelve hour bus south to Bangkok and spent the night in our usual hotel near the airport, Rafael Mansion. In ... read more

Well it's been a while since my last post. Since then I've been a teacher and a student. I've sunbathed and painted people with florescent paint. Contemplated over an iced tea and the ocean. I've gotten to know new plants, new animals and new people. Travel, it's a good thing.... read more